Before the official season kicks off on Nov. 11, the Lobos are warming up with two exhibition matches this week.
“Well, it’s that time,” said head coach Craig Neal. “Real excited about this week. It’s going to give us some time to find out some things about our team.”
Preseason has been an exciting time for the program so far.
New Mexico was selected to finish third in the Mountain West for the 2016-17 season in the conference's preseason poll.
Two Lobos made the Preseason All-MW Team: redshirt junior guard Elijah Brown and redshirt senior forward Tim Williams.
Brown, who was a member of the 2015-2016 All-MW First Team, was named the 2016 Preseason Player of the Year. He was also named as one of the 20 finalists for the Jerry West Shooting Guard of the Year Award.
The theme for this week is New Mexico, as the Lobos host the Western New Mexico Mustangs on Wednesday night and the Eastern New Mexico Greyhounds on Friday night.
The last time the Lobos played the Mustangs was during their first exhibition match of the 2014-2015 season at WisePies Arena aka the Pit. UNM took an 89-45 victory.
Four Lobos had double figures in that game, with guard Cullen Neal, no longer with the team, and his 22 points leading the way.
Both teams went on to end the regular season losing more games than they won.
The Lobos finished with a 15-16 overall record, while the Mustangs finished 3-23.
This year, the Mustangs were picked to finish 10th in the Lone Star Conference preseason poll. They finished the 2015-2016 season with a 1-26 overall record. Their one victory came when they took down Chadron State College 74-70 in an overtime match.
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Nine players from last year's Western New Mexico squad are returning this season. One person who won’t be back is head coach Jeff Law, who stepped down in February, 2016.
In April, the Mustangs named Matt Enriquez as their new head coach. Enriquez is a 2006 WNMU graduate who was inducted into the WNMU Hall of Fame last year.
Friday night’s opponent has slightly better statistics than the Mustangs. Eastern New Mexico finished last season 6-20 overall, and was picked to finish 8th in the LSC preseason poll.
The last time the Greyhounds played the Lobos was in an exhibition match in November of 2013, which UNM won 87-68.
Five UNM players scored in double-figures. Former Lobo Alex Kirk led with 17 points and 16 rebounds.
Four Eastern New Mexico players also scored in double-figures. Former players Rodney Blackmon and Kyle Lantz led their team with 16 points apiece.
Just like the Mustangs, the Greyhounds have a new head coach, Tres Segler, who was an assistant with Midwestern State, the LSC defending champion.
“The reason why we play both of these teams is because they do have new coaches. We are trying to welcome them into the state,” Neal said. “We are trying to do our part in supporting all the state schools. They got two new coaches and it will be challenge because they will be excited.”
Before his team’s first official practice this fall, UNM head coach Craig Neal said the Lobos didn’t meet the program’s standards in the past two years. Defensive improvement is at the forefront of his mind as the team works to rebound.
UNM is a heavy favorite to win both exhibition matches this week, but it’s safe to say Neal will be looking to see more than just a win.
“Wednesday and Friday is going to be a dress rehearsal for me,” Neal said. “Are they going to guard? Are they going to do the little things that we’ve tweaked? We went back to basics defensively and we are trying to improve.”
Isabel Gonzalez is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. She mainly covers men’s soccer and basketball. She can be reached at sports @dailylobo.com or on Twitter @cisabelg.
